Search This Blog

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Newbie Honiara Guide: What to Bring Part Two

Alright then...we've covered what to
bring your luggage...moving on to the shipping allowance. If you are
lucky enough to volunteer and/or work for an organisation that will
pay for your stuff to be shipped to these lovely isles, here is what
I think you should focus your packing energies on. Of course, what
is important to me (e.g. shoes, pink electronics, diving knives) may
not be important to you. So use at your own risk.

If you have a substantial shipping
allowance:

Here are a few ideas
of what to bring if you have a substantial shipping allowance.

Bedding. BRING FITTED SHEETS!
I hate making my bed at the best of times, so without fitted sheets, I lived a life of frustration and angst (just kidding). Honiara doesn't really have any fitted sheets, I HIGHLY recommend
bringing your own. Also bring a blanket, I know it sounds crazy
BUT you will get to the point in the cooler season when you might
feel slightly cool at night. It took me about five months to get
there but my little throw blanket is now always on my bed.

Exercise equipment. Gyms here
are pretty average and most charge about 50 dollars Sollie per
visit. Its a better idea to get a nice home gym going. Running
is fine here but be prepared to be followed by gangs of pikininis
(children) screaming and laughing at you and to be harassed by
men (if you are a woman). I recommend some weights (or those
band thingys), a swiss ball, and perhaps a treadmill.

Small appliances. Bring your
favorite toaster, jug, food processor, blender etc...Small
appliances are expensive here and not very good quality. Our
toaster (which was quite cute, it had a plastic fish on the
handle!) broke within two months. I had to bring one from N.Z.
when I came back from Christchurch. I sent a few things over,
including my stick blender that has a small food processor unit.
It works great and takes up very little room. I highly recommend
taking anything that is multipurpose and durable. Be prepared to
leave it here.

Knives-bring some good
ones...you can buy decent knives in Chinatown but they are kinda
pricey.

Herbs, salts, oils etc...I'm a
bit of a foodie and I love my hickory smoked rough sea salt. I
also love my Nando's Peri Peri sauce. I can't get either here.
Bring fancy herbs, salts, oils...anything you feel like you can't
really cook without, here. If you have the room, why not?

Bring your balls aka sports
equipment. Bringing extra sporting equipment like soccer, rugby
and basketballs will endear you to the locals. The Solomons
Islanders particularly love their football (soccer), so consider
bringing a few extra balls. Also a small air pump won't go
wrong.

Tupperware or Sistema storage
containers. Okay, here in the Sollies there are ants, cockroaches
and rats, oh my! They love food and you don't want them to get
into your food. Bring really good storage containers (I love
Sistema) but its up to you. Be aware that rats are particularly
aggressive and can chew through the plastic so the tougher your
containers are, the better.

Bikes. You can bike around
Honiara, in fact I've seen quite a few pedallers lately making
their way to the beach, going for a snorkel and then biking back.
What a great Sunday morning! If you are out in the provinces,
biking is a great idea. Bring a mountain bike rather than a road
bike, your ass will thank you. Oh and bring a bike lock! Again,
be prepared to give it to a local person when you leave.

Kayak and/or surf/body boards.
Kayaking here would be amazing! You can purchase a dugout canoe
here for about 500 sollies but the balance is quite different
than a kayak and tipping out is a big possiblitiy. I recommend
bringing one if you can afford it and have space. Surfing here
is AWESOME (according to my wantok Eddy). The breaks have NO ONE
on them and they are pretty amazing. A body board would also be
pretty cool here too.

Kids toys/equipment/etc...I am
not a mum so I can't really advice you if you are parent. Here
is what I Would recommend though: the toys here are pretty cheap
and are incredibly breakable. Bring robust stuff from home or
ask a local carver (there are many) to make you some wooden toys.
Again, my housemate makes these, so send me an email if you are
interested. Also, if you want to get in touch with the parents
group, I know people who are involved, so feel free to email me
for contact details.

Life jackets. There may be a
time when you have to travel by boat and there are no life
jackets on board. Bring your own, if you want, to ensure you are
safe should the boat capsize.

Furniture is pretty good here and most
houses come with the basics. You don't have to bring your
refrigerator, freezer, washing machine etc...here unless otherwise
advised by your agency.

Don't Bring:

There are going to be some items that
you will definitely NOT want to bring here. These are my ideas:

Expensive jewelry. If you want to
keep it, don't bring it. I would never recommend any bringing any
kind of expensive or sentimental items here. The chances of it
getting nicked or lost is high. If you are married and want to
bring your rings, I suggest buying or wearing only a simple band.
Wearing a big diamond around Honiara pretty much targets you for
petty criminals. And also, in a country where the cost of your ring
can feed a family for five years, do you really want to be flashing
around that kind of wealth? I know I wouldn't be comfortable with
it. But its up to you. Also, I purchased almost all of my jewelry
here. I like the local accessories and I don't worry if it gets
lost or broken.

Your entire pantry. First off,
don't bring tins of tomatoes or fruits, you can buy it here. By
bringing your entire pantry from home, you are kinda a weirdo. Why
would you want to come here and just eat the same food you ate at
home? Why not just stay at home? It might be slightly more
expensive here but by bringing your tin of Watties Beans (again you
can buy it here) you are also wasting shipping room. Buy local, if
you can bring yourself to do it. I figure the less processed food
you eat, the better for a number of reasons.

Your car. You can buy a car from
Japan and ship it here, usually for a cheap rate or purchase it from
another expat (someone is always leaving). If you love your car,
don't bring it here. If you do decide to bring your vehicle here,
be prepared to pay a mint when you return to your home country in
repairs on shocks, tires and the chassis. This place is killer on
cars. I recommend purchasing a little 4wd vehicle, the roads here
are very bumping and there are lots of potholes. My personal
favorite (and perhaps next vehicle purchase in N.Z.) is a diesel
Toyota Hilux. I love those grunty beasts; they can go anywhere.

Your designer clothes. Clothes
take a beating here, from hard water to over enthusiastic house
meres. Bring a small capsule wardrobe (see clothes above) and then
go to the kalico (bale or second-hand) shops. You can purchase
great stuff there. Plus, you don't want to be wanker showing off
your expensive clothes from home. Remember, people make very little
money here, so being understated in your wardrobe is probably best.

Art: Don't bring your own art,
unless you are prepared to part with it. This climate is killer on
canvas. There are some great local artists (my housemate Mackenzie
is one of them) who is happy to be commissioned to do specific work
for you (email me if you want to know more about this). Again,
doing this helps the local economy and you can take the art home
with you as souvenirs.

Your pet. Again, if you want to,
go ahead. I do know a couple people who brought their animals and
its fine. However, Honiara's animal kingdom is a brutal place. The
streets are lined with feral dogs and cats and chickens (most are
mine, I can't help but keep on adopting these cute fellas. Shade,
my kitten, is the latest adoptee, and at five dollars Sollie per tin
of Solomon Blue, he is fairly affordable to feed). There are lots
of lost dogs and cats that need a good home and a little love, even
temporarily. IF you bring your beloved cat or dog, keep them indoors
or on your property at all times. Leaving your animal to wander
around is a recipe for saying goodbye to your beloved pet.

Chocolate. BRING AT YOUR OWN RISK! It will melt as soon as
you get off the plane. You might be able to get away with it but
pack it in a separate bag so you don't get liquid chocolate all over
your stuff.

Your important documents. Other
than your passport, I would only bring copies of your important
documents. Mold loves paper, so just bring copies and store the
originals at home. Same goes for photos.

High end electronics. Leave your
Bose speakers and Wii at home. I mean, if you want to bring it,
fine, but remember that by bringing it here, you run the risk of
having it stolen. Expat houses DO get targeted by thieves.

Wine. I mean, if you want to
bring your 200 aussie bottle of wine, thats cool, but consider that
you are going to have to run your air conditioner to keep it cool
(if its a red). Also, there is no guarantee that its going to come
to you in one piece or that some of the wine won't go missing. Save
your money and buy locally. Yeah the bottles here aren't as great
as it is at home, but you can still get a decent bottle of wine.

Fancy china and glassware. Unless
you are hosting state dinners, don't bring expensive china here or
flatware or expensive glassware. Tessa and I purchased six beautiful
water classes and within seven months, only one remains. Things
break often here. Aus Pak is a great place to buy sturdy plastic
plates and flatware for good prices. Most of the Chinese shops have
a pretty good selection of affordable glass ware.

Basically, when packing, balance
between needs and wants. Think about what you want to have, how much
time you have here and how you want to use that time. Its great to
have a WII and an XBOX 360 but do you really want to spend your time
indoors when you could be out socialising, getting to know people and
being active?

Found your blog. It is full of really good information. Thank you for sharing. If you ever need service on air conditioning repair please visit us at rheemteamcomfort.com. We would love it if you would have a look at some of our blogs and let us know your thoughts.

Found your blog. It is full of really good information. Thank you for sharing. If you ever need service on air conditioning repair please visit us at rheemteamcomfort.com. We would love it if you would have a look at some of our blogs and let us know your thoughts.

About Me

I'm 33 years old, adventurer and mad woman. Have lived in Washington State, Hawai'i, Namibia and New Zealand! And now the Sols, baby!
About this blog: This blog is about my experiences in the Solomon Islands...enjoy!